30 Most Anticipated Albums of 2015

When Adele tweeted in May 2014, “Bye bye 25 … See you again later in the year,” many assumed we’d be getting new music before 2015 arrived. But it looks like we’ll have to wait a little longer for the yet-untitled (and yet-scheduled) follow-up to her blockbuster 21 album, which sold more than 10 million copies and logged 24 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.

Joey Bada$$, B4.Da.$$ (Jan. 20)

The Brooklyn rapper has been making noise since 2010, but B4.Da.$$ (pronounced “Before Da Money”) is his debut studio album. The album arrives next month, on his 20th birthday.

There were a lot of Justin Bieber headlines in 2014, but very few of them were about music. That could all change very soon: Bieber reportedly told fans he was thinking about releasing his next album, his first since 2012’s Believe, around his birthday in March.

Bjork

Fans might have been bummed when Bjork missed the London premiere of her new concert film in October, but she had a very encouraging excuse: She was hard at work in the studio on the yet-untitled follow-up to 2011’s Biophilia, set to arrive in 2015.

Kelly Clarkson

Sure, the O.G. American Idol tided us over with a Christmas album and a greatest-hits collection since 2011’s Stronger, but we’re ready for new music — and so is she. In a Twitter conversation with fans, Clarkson said, “I’m so proud of my next album! Might have a special guest… Doesn’t come until early next year.”

Coldplay, A Head Full of Dreams

Coldplay stunned fans in early December when they referred to their upcoming seventh album as their “final” project, but frontman Chris Martin did leave the door open. “The way we look at it, it’s like the last Harry Potter book or something like that. Not to say that there might not be another thing one day, but this is the completion of something.”

Drake, Views From the 6

Drake hadn’t even begun recording his fourth album when he revealed its title in July 2014, but a lyrical hint from “0 to 100/The Catch Up” might clue us in to the project’s release date: “We already got spring 2015 poppin’.”

The epic jock jam “Centuries” has us pumped for FOB’s first project since their 2013 comeback album Save Rock and Roll. Singer Patrick Stump is pumped too, tweeting in November 2014, “Some people will love it. Some people will hate it. The four of us like it a lot, so we’re happy.”

Fergie

We’ve gotten just a taste of Fergie’s solo comeback with “L.A. Love (La La),” and we’re patiently waiting for more Fergalicious jams. Mike WiLL Made-It has logged some studio time with the Black Eyed Peas alum, so expect some “We Can’t Stop”-style beats.

Lupe Fiasco, Tetsuo & Youth (Jan. 20)

The Chicago MC hasn’t released an album since 2012’s Food & Liquor II, and he’s been hyping up Tetsuo since a 2013 preview tour. Early songs featuring Chris Brown and Ed Sheeran didn’t make the track list, so “Deliver” with Ty Dolla Sign — which dropped in November — is the album’s first official single.

Fifth Harmony, Reflection (Jan. 27)

The girl group has been on the rise since finishing third on The X Factor season 2. While the five ladies came together back in 2012, Reflection is their debut full-length album.

Ellie Goulding

Her voice can be heard all over radio, but Goulding hasn’t released an album since 2012’s Halcyon. In November she revealed that more of her ethereal dance sounds are on the way. “The only big thing coming up for me now is my third album, which won’t be out until next year. Everything is going into that.”

Grimes

After releasing the divisive song “Go” — which she wrote forRihanna but released herself — Grimes revealed in September 2014 that she scrapped her entire album and started fresh. Here’s hoping she sticks with her latest material so it actually comes out in 2015.

The Cleveland rapper is getting back to his roots by continuing his Man on the Moon series, which he started in 2009 with his debut studio album, The Man on the Moon: The End of the Day. His goal for the series: “I want people to be able to put this album on at different points in their lives and grow with me.”

Kendrick Lamar

While his third studio album was supposed to arrive in 2014, on the heels of “i” dropping in September, we’re still waiting for the good kid, m.A.A.d city follow-up. Lamar’s November 2014 appearance on Saturday Night Live, where he performed “i” and “Pay for It” with Jay Rock, will have to tide us over for now.

Demi Lovato

There’s no firm release date yet, but Lovato’s manager told Billboard in October 2014 that a follow-up to 2013’s Demi will be out next year. “She’s already done some songs, but certainly the majority of it will kick off next year,” Phil McIntyre teased.

The LOX, We Are the Streets 2

The LOX — Jadakiss, Sheek Louch and Styles P — were signed to Bad Boy Records way back in 1995, but their upcoming album is only their third. To mark 20 years in the industry, the New York trio will deliver their first new album since 2000’s We Are the Streets.

Loretta Lynn

Van Lear Rose introduced the country legend to a whole new audience in 2004, and she’s ready to collect even more fans with her upcoming 2015 album. Last time, she teamed up with Jack White; this time around, she’s working with her daughter, Patsy L. Russell, and John Carter Cash, son of Johnny and June.

It’s been a tumultuous month for Madonna, who saw 10 demos from her Rebel Heart studio sessions hit the web. But she took control of the situation by releasing six finished songs, including the single “Live for Love,” and announcing that the whole album would arrive in just three months.

Giorgio Moroder, 74 Is the New 24

After his prominent role on Daft Punk’s Grammy-winning Random Access Memories, the disco legend returns with his first album in more than 30 years. The project includes collaborations with Sia, Charli XCX, Britney Spears and more.

Ne-Yo, Non-Fiction (Jan. 27)

He’s already released two singles — “Money Can’t Buy” featuring Jeezy and “She Knows” featuring Juicy J — and previewed a third song with Pitbull, “Time of Our Lives,” during November’s American Music Awards. We’ll hear the rest when Ne-Yo’s sixth studio album arrives Jan. 27.

Frank Ocean

We’ve been waiting since 2012’s Channel Orange to see what Frank Ocean will do next. Well, in November 2014, he gave us a sneak peek with the brief song “Memrise.” Now we wait some more to see if “Memrise” leads to a full-length release in 2015.

One Direction

Following the logic of the boy band’s release schedule so far — Up All Night (November 2011), Take Me Home (November 2012), Midnight Memories (November 2013) and Four (November 2014) — we can probably expect a fifth (and final?) album from 1D in November 2015.

Raekwon, Fly International Luxurious Art

The Wu-Tang MC no longer needs to prove his rap skills, so he’s hoping to stretch his boundaries on the 2015 release. “There are certain sounds I want to explore and not make it just a hard-core album from a hard-core emcee. I just want it to be universal — I want it to have stuff for the radio and for the hardest emcees.”

After releasing an album a year from 2009-2012, we haven’t had a new full-length from Rihanna since Unapologetic two years ago. We’re hoping 2015 is the year of Rihanna’s return — whatever form she takes this time around.

Mark Ronson, Uptown Special (Jan. 13)

We’ve already heard the Hot 100 smash “Uptown Funk,” featuring Bruno Mars — not to mention the return of Mystikal on “Feel Right” — but there’s no track list yet, so the rest of the guests remain to be seen.

Sleater-Kinney, No Cities to Love (Jan. 20)

After a 10-year hiatus, the all-female rock band is back. The comeback album was accidentally leaked by Sub Pop on Dec. 22, but that hasn’t dimmed anticipation for the return of the beloved trio.

Gwen Stefani and/or No Doubt

This fall has marked the return of solo Gwen Stefani, following 2006’s Sweet Escape, with two new songs so far: “Baby Don’t Lie” and “Spark the Fire” with Pharrell. But if Gwen has her way, 2015 could be the year she releases a solo album and a new No Doubt project. “At this point, I’m thinking about both, I can do both,” she told MTV News in September.

Meghan Trainor, Title (Jan. 13)

She had one of the biggest singles of 2014 with “All About That Bass,” and now we get a chance to see what else she’s about when her full-length debut — cheekily titled Title — arrives in January.

Kanye West

Last but not least: Will we get new Kanye in 2015? Rihanna’s Diamond Ball auction put 2015 Kanye tour tickets up for bid, and it would seem like he’ll need some new material to promote. We know West has been in the studio, but it remains to be seen when the follow-up to 2013’s Yeezus will hit shelves.